Trailblazing Page

Hi-Tech Equipment Helps Trailblazing Caithness Scientists

PRESS & JOURNAL (IAIN GRANT) 14 July 2004

Sophisticated new detection equipment worth £200,000 is enabling a team of Caithness-based scientists to embark on a number of trailblazing projects.
Scientists at the Environmental Research Institute (ERI) have embarked on a project to establish if seaweed in the Highlands could be a source of natural antibiotic drugs.
And another pioneering study is seeking to gauge the amount of used medicines which may find their way into Scottish reservoirs.
A cosmopolitan team of post-graduates based at the ERI's base in Castle Street in Thurso is carrying out the research under the guidance of research director Dr.Stuart Gibb and his colleagues.
They include five young scientists recruited from more than 650 who applied from UK and abroad to fill the posts.

The ERI is part of North Highland College and is gearing towards playing a major part in the college's role within the planned University of the Highlands and Islands.
New equipment comprises a high-resolution chromatographic mass spectrometer which can break down complex mixtures and identify and quantify individual components.
Dr Gibb said: "It's the most sensitive technology available to research scientists today."
Used to uncover drugs cheats in sport, the machine can process a vast array of natural compounds, including herbicides, pesticides, drugs and vitamins.
It operates at the level of nanogrammes per litre, which means that it could pick up and identify a teaspoonful of material in a tank the size of 1000 Olympic-size swimming pools.
The German-made machine was funded by the UHI Millennium Institute, the European Regional Development Fund, the UK Strategic Infrastructure Fund and Caithness and Sutherland Enterprise.

And in another project, Swiss post-graduate student Diane Ruchonnet is in the throes of examining seaweed samples taken from Thurso beach.
Her quest is to expose particular constituents of the seaweed to bacteria to establish whether they could be harvested to serve as an antibiotic.
Dr Gibb said the project is particularly exciting as it could potentially create an opening for a new local business.
He said: "In a lot of the projects we have started up, we have an eye on the commercial opportunities that could be developed. We are very keen to make a contribution towards the sustainability of the area and the local economy."
And he stressed the seaweed project shows the merit of having an environmental institute in the far north.
Dr Gibb added: "One of the main advantages of having the institute in this area is that we have such wonderful natural resources on our doorstep. Where better to site an environmental lab?" Spaniard Carolina Nebot is carrying out the first study in Scotland to monitor for the presence of prescribed drugs in Scottish waters. It follows a re-assessment of the potential risk associated with traces of used drugs, such as antibiotics, steroids, hormones, analgesics and tranquillisers resurfacing in the human environment.
Of particular concern are pain-killers and anti-inflammatory and anti-epileptic drugs which are not fully broken down by sewage treatment.




	Hi-Tech Equipment Helps Trailblazing Caithness Scientists PRESS & JOURNAL (IAIN GRANT) 14 July 2004 Sophisticated new detection equipment worth £200,000 is enabling a team of Caithness-based scientists to embark on a number of trailblazing projects. Scientists at the Environmental Research Institute (ERI) have embarked on a project to establish if seaweed in the Highlands could be a source of natural antibiotic drugs. And another pioneering study is seeking to gauge the amount of used medicines which may find their way into Scottish reservoirs. A cosmopolitan team of post-graduates based at the ERI's base in Castle Street in Thurso is carrying out the research under the guidance of research director Dr.Stuart Gibb and his colleagues. They include five young scientists recruited from more than 650 who applied from UK and abroad to fill the posts. The ERI is part of North Highland College and is gearing towards playing a major part in the college's role within the planned University of the Highlands and Islands. New equipment comprises a high-resolution chromatographic mass spectrometer which can break down complex mixtures and identify and quantify individual components. Dr Gibb said: "It's the most sensitive technology available to research scientists today." Used to uncover drugs cheats in sport, the machine can process a vast array of natural compounds, including herbicides, pesticides, drugs and vitamins. It operates at the level of nanogrammes per litre, which means that it could pick up and identify a teaspoonful of material in a tank the size of 1000 Olympic-size swimming pools. The German-made machine was funded by the UHI Millennium Institute, the European Regional Development Fund, the UK Strategic Infrastructure Fund and Caithness and Sutherland Enterprise. And in another project, Swiss post-graduate student Diane Ruchonnet is in the throes of examining seaweed samples taken from Thurso beach. Her quest is to expose particular constituents of the seaweed to bacteria to establish whether they could be harvested to serve as an antibiotic. Dr Gibb said the project is particularly exciting as it could potentially create an opening for a new local business. He said: "In a lot of the projects we have started up, we have an eye on the commercial opportunities that could be developed. We are very keen to make a contribution towards the sustainability of the area and the local economy." And he stressed the seaweed project shows the merit of having an environmental institute in the far north. Dr Gibb added: "One of the main advantages of having the institute in this area is that we have such wonderful natural resources on our doorstep. Where better to site an environmental lab?" Spaniard Carolina Nebot is carrying out the first study in Scotland to monitor for the presence of prescribed drugs in Scottish waters. It follows a re-assessment of the potential risk associated with traces of used drugs, such as antibiotics, steroids, hormones, analgesics and tranquillisers resurfacing in the human environment. Of particular concern are pain-killers and anti-inflammatory and anti-epileptic drugs which are not fully broken down by sewage treatment.

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